Progress on highway bill but Keystone unresolved - US senator

May 23, 2012|Reuters

* Boehner hopeful bill to include Keystone pipeline

* Boxer says talk with Boehner boosts optimism on bill

* No veto-proof majority in House for pipeline - Boxer

By Roberta Rampton

WASHINGTON, May 23 (Reuters) - Lawmakers on a U.S.Senate-House committee are making progress on finalizing atransportation spending bill, Senator Barbara Boxer said onWednesday, although a provision that would fast-track theKeystone XL crude pipeline is still unresolved.

The committee's starting point is a two-year, $106 billionbill to fund road, bridge and rail projects passed by the Senatein March.

Republicans have insisted that the legislation includeapproval of the Canada-to-Texas Keystone oil pipeline, whichPresident Barack Obama put on hold earlier this year afterenvironmentalists raised concerns.

In a weekly update on the closed-door negotiations on how toadvance the bill, Boxer, the Democratic chairman of theSenate-House panel, said she was more optimistic than ever thata deal could be reached by a June deadline after discussing thebill with Republican House Speaker John Boehner on Tuesdayevening.

"He (Boehner) is working to make sure we get this done, andthat is the best news I have heard in a long time," Boxer said,without addressing specifics of the thorny points of the talks.

"I'm hopeful that the negotiators can complete work on aconference agreement that includes Keystone and other energymeasures to address high gas prices and create jobs," Boehnersaid.

Boxer added that she was determined to push through a billthat would pass Congress and be acceptable to Obama, who hassaid he would veto a bill that overturned his decision onTransCanada Corp's project, which he has said needsmore environmental review before it can proceed.

"I've said from the start: I'm not going to produce a billthat's going to be vetoed, and I'm not going to produce a billthat's going to be a controversy, because it won't go through,"Boxer, a Democrat,

If lawmakers cannot agree on the bill, they could craftanother short-term extension of funding. But a trust fund thathelps pay for highway repairs will run out of money in thefiscal year that begins Oct. 1.

Boxer said a symbolic vote held on Friday in the House ofRepresentatives, which is controlled by Republicans, showedthere was not a two-thirds majority in the House needed tooverturn a presidential veto on the Keystone issue.

The non-binding vote, which passed 261-152, urged the panelto include Keystone in the highway bill. Twenty-six Democratsvoted in favor of the motion, while 151 Democrats opposed it.

"I thought it was good that they had (the vote) actually, sothat we can see there wasn't enough to override a veto. So itwas instructional," Boxer said.